Louisiana Pine Snake

25-65 inches. Pale tan with a row of large black or brown blotches down the back, and a smaller series on each side; underside whitish with obscure brown spotting; tip of snout pointed; scales keeled and in 27-33 rows.

Habits:

Louisiana pine snakes occur in open longleaf pine uplands where soil is loose. They favor pocket gophers as prey, and spend most of their time in gopher burrows. A small flap at the entrance to their windpipe allows pine snakes to produce a very loud hiss. They lay from 1-5 eggs.

Distribution:

Upland areas of central Louisiana. The Louisiana pine snake has disappeared from much of its former range (orange area of map), and is presently known from the region around Bienville to near Readhimer, Peason Ridge area, and Fort Polk (red areas).